


So Close I Can Taste It

by TrenchWarfare



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: 5+1 Things, First Dates, First Kiss, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Misunderstandings, Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-27
Updated: 2015-10-27
Packaged: 2018-04-28 08:58:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5085832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrenchWarfare/pseuds/TrenchWarfare
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>5 times Roxas didn’t propose and 1 time he did</p>
            </blockquote>





	So Close I Can Taste It

1

Roxas doesn’t know why Kairi insisted on setting him up on a blind date now of all times. Sure, he hasn’t dated anyone in a while, but he hasn’t exactly been lonely either. Axel’s prank war has been keeping his mind away from that sort of darkness.

Though Roxas thinks he probably should have expected it at least a little when Axel slides into the seat across from him.

“Hey, babe,” Axel says and Roxas scowls. He’s stuck here, according to the rules established when it became obvious the prank war was going to last more than a few weeks. You can’t leave a prank that’s in progress, it’s considered a forfeit and you lose the war.

“Axel,” Roxas grinds out, “I wasn’t expecting you.”

Axel looks delighted, “Really? Man, I thought you were smarter than that.” Axel reaches across the table and grasps Roxas’s hand. Roxas tries to yank it away, but Axel’s grip is too tight.

“What are you doing?” Roxas asks when he resigns himself to holding Axel’s hand in this fancy restaurant.

“Now, babe,” Roxas hates how the nickname makes him go hot, “I don’t want to ruin the surprise,” Axel’s smile is predatory and Roxas feels a familiar mixture of adrenaline and lust rise in him.

The next hour is filled with Axel flirting and just generally acting like the perfect date and Roxas’s heart aches with how much he wants this. He’s considering forfeiting the prank war just to save himself from seeing this play out and then having to go back to how they were.

By dessert, Roxas is playing along, because he’s never really cared much about what’s good for himself. And then just as the waiter starts heading over to their table to drop off the check, Axel stands up.

“Roxas,” Axel declares loudly, effectively getting the entire restaurants attention. This is it, this is the entire reason Axel did this. Roxas’s mind whirls with possibilities. Is he just going to leave Roxas with the check? Maybe he’ll want to cause a scene instead, start fighting with him. Maybe break up with him.

He’s not at all prepared when Axel gets down on one knee. “Oh no,” Roxas whispers, because this is somehow worse, because this is actually something he’s maybe daydreamed about once or twice.

“I’ve known you for eight years now,” Axel begins and takes Roxas’s hand again. And oh god, he’s going to draw this out. Roxas feels his face burn at the stares from the rest of the restaurant and he ducks his head. Axel is looking up at him in wonder and Roxas’s throat goes dry.

It feels like Axel goes on forever, but it couldn’t be more than a few minutes. Then he finally pulls a ring box out of his pocket.

“Roxas, will you marry me?” There’s silence in the restaurant after this and Roxas just stares at Axel, trying to commit the sound of Axel saying that to memory, because he knows he’ll never hear it for real.

Roxas must take too long to do this because Axel starts awkwardly shifting on his knee and someone on the other side of the restaurant yells out, “say yes!”

“Y-yeah, yes, Axel of course.” Roxas grits out, eager to get out of there and maybe punch Axel in the nose.

Axel’s answering smile is huge as he slides the ring onto Roxas’s finger and then he pulls Roxas into a hug while the restaurant cheers.

Roxas just wants to get out of there, so during the hug he hisses in Axel’s ear, “hurry up and pay, asshole.”

Axel is still smiling when he pulls away and gestures the waiter over.

“Ah, don’t worry about it, sir, it’s on the house for such a happy couple.” The waiter waves away Axel’s credit card.

They walk back to campus together and as soon as they’re a block away from the restaurant Roxas punches Axel in the gut.

2

Roxas fiddles with the cuffs on his sleeves, anxiously rubbing at the cotton and scratching at the seams. His leg is bouncing underneath the table and he’s trying to look anywhere but at Axel.

When he finally does look at Axel though, he looks just as ridiculously nervous as Roxas feels and he feels something unidentifiable swell up in his chest.

“This is weird, isn’t it?” Roxas asks with a tiny smile and Axel looks at him with wide eyes.

“No!” He says, loud enough that the people one table over look their way.

“Hey,” Roxas says and places his hand halfway across the table, palm up, “it’s not a bad weird, okay?”

Axel stares at Roxas’s hand like he’s waiting for it to veer off course and plunge a steak knife into his chest. “Yeah,” he says and some of the tension eases out of his shoulders, “it’s a little weird,” he laughs but puts his hand in Roxas’s.

Axel’s hand is a little damp, but the weight of it is familiar and Roxas feels the last of the tension in his body slip away.

“Relax, Axel,” Roxas smiles, “it’s just me.”

“I just don’t want to fuck this up,” Axel says with a self-deprecating smile.

“I mean, you could start by not looking like it’s someone’s funeral,” Roxas laughs as Axel rushes to apologize. “Just… stop worrying. You’ve known me for nine years. I’m not going to run away anytime soon.”

“Right,” Axel breathes out and just looks at Roxas, stars in his eyes. “I just never really imagined I’d ever get to have this.”

“That’s funny,” Roxas says around the sudden lump in his throat, “I thought the same thing.”

Axel’s answering smile is blinding and Roxas has to look away.

Now past that initial awkwardness, the date goes well. Really well. It’s not perfect, like their false date a year ago; Roxas knocks over a glass of water and Axel keeps accidentally kicking Roxas in the shin because his legs are ridiculously long, but it’s one hundred times better because it’s real.

Then, they finish eating and Axel reaches into his pocket. Roxas watches the smile slip off his face and feels dread pool in his own stomach.

“What’s wrong?” Roxas asks as Axel curses and lays his head in his hands.

“I forgot my wallet,” Axel says into his palms.

“Oh,” Roxas didn’t bring his, having been assured by Axel only a few hours ago that he would definitely be paying since he’s the one who asked him out. They had no way to pay for this and the waitress would no doubt be bringing the check over soon.

“I’m sorry, I could run back to campus and grab it, or maybe I just left it in my car? You could distract the waitress by ordering more things maybe.” Axel’s kind of babbling, but Roxas gets an idea.

“No, no,” Roxas holds up a hand to stop Axel’s rush of words, “I got this.”

Roxas stands and clears his throat loudly, drawing the attention of the tables around them. “Axel,” he says loudly, drawing the attention of everyone else. And then, he gets down on one knee. Comprehension dawns on Axel’s face.

And Roxas just repeats the speech, that he would never admit that he has memorized, that Axel said to him over a year ago. And he takes off the very same ring that Axel must have noticed he wears all the time, but he’s never commented on it. Roxas used to be thankful for that, thinking that Axel knew about his crush, but didn’t want to say anything or ruin their friendship.

The last sentence, when it finally leaves his mouth, just feels right. Roxas imagines himself saying it for real and he suddenly can’t wait for the day when he’ll get to say “Will you marry me?” and Axel will know it’s not a joke.

Axel says yes and the restaurant cheers. The waitress waves them away, saying the meal is on the house and they stumble outside, faces flushed with adrenaline and Roxas reaches up and pulls Axel’s face down to his in a kiss.

“Don’t forget your wallet next time,” Roxas says to Axel’s shell-shocked face when he pulls away to breathe.

3

For their one year anniversary, Axel brings him to one of the fanciest restaurants in town. Roxas feels underdressed even though he’s in his nicest clothes. Axel looks great, dressed in black slacks that accentuate his long legs, and a dark purple button up shirt, with the top three buttons unbuttoned, teasing at the tattoos that sprawl across his chest underneath.

“I thought it’d be cute if we sort of recreated our first date,” Axel says once they’ve sat down and gotten their menus.

“Really?” Roxas says and looks pointedly at their surroundings.

“Obviously not the location, but you know, the rest of it,” Axel’s smile is a little sheepish and Roxas’s chest does a funny thing. He can’t believe that Axel can still make him feel like this even after knowing him for so long.

“So you’re gonna bruise my shins with your stupid legs again?” Roxas asks and Axel’s face goes mock offended.

“My legs are not stupid!” he says, and then, as if to prove it, he uses his foot to caress Roxas’s leg under the table.

“Are you playing footsie with me?” Roxas asks, incredulous.

“Maybe,” Axel grins.

“Wait,” Roxas narrows his eyes, “is that what you were trying to do last time when you kept kicking me?”

“Uh, no?” Axel’s eyes are wide and Roxas breaks into laughter.

The night is nice, they haven’t been able to spend as much time together recently between Axel’s new job and Roxas’s classes. It doesn’t have any of the awkwardness of their first date and the night passes easily with the normal amount of teasing and contentment at just being together. Roxas has forgotten completely about Axel’s first comment until he stands up and clears his throat and _oh_. That’s what he meant.

Roxas is grateful that Axel warned him, that he doesn’t accidentally believe this is real, but his heart still does gymnastics in his chest when Axel gets down on one knee.

They don’t end up getting a free meal out of it, the restaurant is probably a proposal hotspot, but that’s fine. They’re still giddy when they leave and Roxas tries to calm his heart down, trying to convince it that it wasn’t real.

4

When Axel gets home from work, he drops his briefcase on the floor right in front of the door and just climbs into Roxas’s lap.

Roxas just looks down at him and starts petting his hair. “What’s wrong?” he asks. It’s not a completely new thing, but it’s not common either. Axel only does this when he’s had a particularly bad day at work.

Axel’s initial reply is swallowed by the fabric of Roxas’s shirt, so Roxas has to ask him to repeat it. “I’m getting laid off,” Axel says without looking Roxas in the eye.

Well, fuck. Sure, they wouldn’t be in too much trouble financially, they both have a good amount of money saved up, but it would be a strain.

“We’re going to be fine,” Roxas leans his chin on the top of Axel’s head and wraps his arms around him.

“I know, but,” Axel doesn’t finish, but Roxas knows what he means. Job hunting is probably the hardest thing to do and Axel isn’t a patient person. It’s going to be a trying couple of months.

They sit there for a while, just comforting each other with their presence. Until Roxas gets an idea.

“Alright, come on,” Roxas pushes Axel off him and jumps to his feet. “Let’s not just sit around and mope about the end of something. Let’s celebrate a new beginning.”

“Celebrate? Roxas, we don’t really have the money-“ Axel says, reaching for Roxas’s hips.

“No, it’s fine,” Roxas takes off the Ring (it’s forever capitalized in his mind now) and holds it up, “I’ve got a plan.”

5

As soon as their waiter comes up to their table he sneers at their clasped hands.

The restaurant is a pretty lowkey establishment, not too fancy, but still really nice. Axel and Roxas are tucked into a booth in the corner of the room. They meet each other’s eyes over the table and Roxas could tell Axel immediately had the same idea as him.

“What can I get for you gentlemen?” The waiter asks, a trace of disgust in the nasally way he said gentlemen.

“Oh, I think I’ll have the smoked salmon and for my boyfriend,” Axel sent a simpering smile Roxas’s way, “maybe the chicken parmesan?”

Roxas runs his fingertips over Axel’s wrist, “Sounds perfect, babe.”

The waiter coughs and leaves without another word. Axel and Roxas break into laughter.

“Holy shit, did you see his face?”

“I can’t believe how homophobic some people are!”

“I thought he was going to kill you for a second there.”

“We should be one of those disgusting couples who sit on the same side of the booth.”

“Dude, let’s do it,” Roxas gets up and slides in next to Axel. Axel wraps an arm around his shoulders and pulls him in as close as possible and Roxas ends up half in Axel’s lap, so he burrows his face in Axel’s chest.

When the waiter returns with their food, his face is as red as Axel’s hair. He coughs again, more pointedly this time and Roxas turns a dreamy smile to him.

“Sorry, I just couldn’t stand to be so far away from him for an entire meal!” Roxas says and puts a hand on Axel’s cheek, “He was giving me puppy eyes. Tell me you could say no to this face, I dare you.”

As soon as the food is safely on the table, the waiter high-tails it out of there.

“Well that was kind of rude,” Axel says with a shit-eating grin.

They spend the entire date feeding each other, which means they’re there for like twice as long as they normally would be. Roxas keeps glancing at the waiter out of the corner of his eye, and he looks constipated every time he looks over at them.

The waiter brings their check before they even finish the food. Axel makes sure to lick Roxas’s fingers while the waiter is setting it on the table.

“Let’s see if we can actually give him a heart attack,” Axel says when they finish eating. He pulls the Ring out of his wallet (and Roxas wonders when he started keeping it in there) and they do the awkward shuffling dance of Roxas getting out of the booth so Axel can get out and then Roxas sitting back down.

“Oh my gosh,” Roxas says as Axel drops to his knee. He makes sure his voice is loud enough to draw the attention of the waiter.

“Babe, would you do me the honor of marrying my flamingly homosexual self?” Axel asks and Roxas squeaks.

“Yes, yes!” He throws his arms around Axel’s neck dramatically. The restaurant applauds, but through the applause, Roxas hears glass breaking.

Roxas plants a sloppy kiss on Axel’s laughing mouth.

The manager comes over and shakes their hands to congratulate them and insists that their meal is on the house, even when Roxas tries to pay anyway.

The waiter glares at them as they walk out holding hands.

+1

Roxas bought a new ring for this. The other one was nice enough, but it was just costume jewelry, which was made even more obvious when Roxas was shopping for a ring. He couldn’t get over how fake the old one felt once he held a real one.

The new one, the _real_ one, is a shining white gold, thin, but still wide enough to perfectly accent Axel’s long fingers. The box sits heavy in his pocket all night.

When Roxas falls to his knee this time, his heart is beating madly against his ribcage and his hands are shaking as he pulls the ring box out of his pocket. He forces himself to meet Axel’s eyes even though he doesn’t want to watch the inevitable rejection.

“Axel, I’ve known you for thirteen years and we’ve been dating for four of those. I never thought I’d get to have this. That I’d get to have _you_ -“ Roxas’s throat closes up, but he forces himself to keep going.

“I was so happy when you asked me out, I couldn’t actually believe it was real. I actually thought you were continuing our prank war until Xion slapped some sense into me. We’ve been through a lot these past few years, but we’ve come out of everything stronger because of each other. I’d love nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you.”

Roxas takes a deep breath as he lets the words land on Axel, “Will you marry me?” and this is it. It’s out now. He can’t take it back.

Axel is silent and he looks a little confused. Roxas braces himself. This is it. The rejection. “Of course,” Axel says quietly.

Roxas can’t stop the grin from spreading across his face. He slides the ring onto Axel’s finger and feels a thrill run through him at seeing proof that Axel belongs to him.

Roxas kisses Axel sweetly and he feels like he’s floating.

Until,

“Wow, Rox, that was some really good acting.” Axel says after they leave the restaurant.

“What?” Roxas asks, his stomach heavy.

“You know, the ‘proposing,’” Axel actually uses finger quotes, “I almost believed it myself for a second,” Axel’s laugh sounds brittle.

“Oh,” Roxas feels tears gathering at the corners of his eyes and he tries desperately to blink them away.

“What was the occasion anyway? Were the people behind me being homophobic or something?” Axel asks, waving his hand around, the ring glinting mockingly at him from his finger and Roxas just loses it.

He punches Axel in the jaw. He didn’t even realize he was doing it until Axel is stumbling backwards.

“Fuck, fuck,” Roxas says and his voice is cracking and his face is wet, but Axel is staring at him with something a bit like wonder in his eyes, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean,” and he’s full on crying now. Because of course Axel wouldn’t have said yes if Roxas was asking for real. Of course Axel doesn’t want to spend the rest of his life with him.

Axel is just standing there, hand on his sore jaw, grinning manically through the blood from his split lip. And it feels like he’s making fun of him and the tears come harder and Roxas tries not to punch him again.

“Hey,” Axel says, putting a hand on Roxas’s shoulder. Roxas shrugs it off and turns away. “Roxas, I didn’t realize that was for real,”

“Obviously,” Roxas says and he’s proud of his steady voice even if he can’t stop the tears from falling.

“No, no, I mean,” Axel runs his fingers through his hair and looks at the sky, “I fucked up. Ask me again, when I know it’s real.”

“No,” Roxas couldn’t handle the rejection, he’s already crying in the middle of the street. What more does Axel want from him?

Axel stares at him and must realize that Roxas isn’t going to budge, so he sighs and pulls the ring off his finger, “fine,” he says and gets down on one knee.

“Roxas, this is for real, this is not for free food or to piss off a homophobe, I genuinely want to spend the rest of my life with you,” Axel is holding up the ring and Roxas has imagined this countless times, but never like this.

“That’s your ring, dumbass,” Roxas says, but he can feel the beginning of a smile working its way onto his face.

“Only if you say yes,” Axel says, “Will you marry me?”

It may not be how Roxas imagined it and it’s kind of fucked up, but so are they.

“Duh.”

**Author's Note:**

> Shoutout to Katlyn who is the sole reason this fic exists. You're amazing <3
> 
> I have a [twitter](http://twitter.com/trenchwarfaire) where I talk about Kingdom Hearts a lot or a [tumblr](http://personalpanstump.tumblr.com) where I post whatever (mostly Fall Out Boy I'm sorry.)


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